Garment press



Ot. 13, 1931'. M. M. TITERINGTON 1,827,341 y SEARIIENT PRES S Filed June9, 1924 2 sheets-'sheet 1 Oct- 13 1931- M. M. TITTERINGTON 1,827,341

GARMEN T PRES S Filed June 9, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Monnrs M.TITTERINGTON,

n closed and which is adapted to apply final,v

Patented ct. 13, 1931 UNITED sTA'rlazs PATENT oI-l-rciz A' 'TION 0F NEWYOBK OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, TO THEPROSPEBITY COMPANY, INC., OF SYRACU SE, NEW YORK, A COBPORA.- A

'-GAnMENT PRESS Application mea :une $1924. serial N0. 718,681.

,- improved garment pressing machine of small compact size adapted to behand or foot pressure by improved power means.

Another principle object of the invention is to produce a pressingmachine having correspondingly equal sized pressing jaw memberspossessing a novel movement to provide extended visibility of the workand easy access thereto without at the same time raislngv the press headhigh of the buck, the object being to combine this feature withoperating means, power driven if desired, all parts of which arelocatedwithin the frame of the press to avoid the ordinary presentdayrearwardly extending horizontal and weighted press lever whichusually vrequires considerable ioor space to swing up and down to therear of the press frame. To this end one of my improvements relates to avertically disposed press lever, the movement of whichdoes not extendbeyond the boundary of the presslng machine frame,

and my machine therefore requires no more space than the frame itselfrequires; and the novelty of this feature. rests in pa'rt in thecombination thereof with improved operating mechanism. 1 p

Another object of the invention is to produce an improved pedal andtoggle of less number parts than ordinarily employed, and to use inconnection therewith motor'means for producingdnal pressure; and afeature of 1 my invention is the combination of a diaphragm with a leverto impose high pressure beween the press jaws. n

My invention further relates to .improvements over the pressing machineinvention described in my application Serial Number 687 `765, filedJanuary 22, 1924. v

The accompanylng drawings illustrate a preferred embodiment of theinvention and it is understood how changes in construction and .mode ofoperation may be made without departing from the scope and principle ofthe invention.

Figure 1 shows a side view of the pressing to permit the old style levermachine with the press head open. The dotted outline indicates closedposition of the press dotted lines, and the motor means, being theimproved diaphragm pressure developing element., is shown at rest justprior to expansion to apply final pressure to the press jaws. This viewalso illustrates a toggle and pedal element of composite structure whichis characterized in that an extension of one 'of the toggle links formsthe pedal.

Figure 2 shows a side view of the lower portion of the press with themotor means and toggle in .high pressure position with the pedal 30 alsoomitted for clearness.

Figure 3 shows a cross sectional view as developed along the line 3-3 ofFigure 2, and the pedal 30 is left off in this view as well..

Referring further to the drawings for a detailed description of theinvention, there is shown a pressing machine frame 10 having the usualtable 11 and back plate 12 to vprevent the garment from falling olf ofthe table to the rear; and a legged type frame is shown but it is to beunderstood that a pedestal frame may be employed if desired. The framesupports a press buck 13, and both pressing jaws, the buck 13 and head'15,' may be heated by suitable means Such as steam or electricity. Theheating means, however, is not illustrated because my. inventionparticularly relates toan improved construction in press operatingmechanism intended to reduce the size of pressing machines in generaland simplify their construction.

The pressing head 15 is carried on the upper end of a -verticallydisposed ress lever composed of an upper yoke or arc 16 and a lower arm17 4integral therewith. The lever is pivoted at 18` on the press frame10 and hooks over or curves around the plate 12 and reaches forwardly tocarry the press head 15 back and forth up and down on the buck; and

jaws but with the pedal 30 omittedin' surface ofthe buck to extendedvisibility to provide an unobstructed view of the work. furthermore inmy pressing machine it is not necessary to lift the head 15 so high aswith the usual style of pressing machines for the reason that the saidhead 1s moved rearwardl while in present day pressing machines the headmust necessarily undergo long movement to gain visibility and access tothe work which leads into complicated operating mechanism for performingsuch high head lift. Instead of operating my press jaws by simpleangular movement, which after all s till leaves the large size presshead poised directly over the buck, I combine rectilinear motiontherewith which imparts to the head a rearward throwback actionsimultaneously with the angular rising movement; and to accomplish theresults named it is noted that the lever fulcrilm point 18 is placedbelow the meeting or pressing jaw plane and to the rear of thelongitudinal axis of the pressing jaws. In carrying out'the foregoingmode of operation I am enabled to remove the usual rearwardly projectinglever arm with exposed counteralance weight and install it inside thepress frame together with a new toggle pedal locking means, the separateelements of which do not wholly constitute my invention, for that moreparticularly is in thescombination.

rIhe lower arm 17 of the press lever projects downwardly in asubstantially vertical direction and is adapted to swing in and out ofthe frame as shown in the two positions in Figure 1. An improved featureof my invention is the compact design of the operating mechanism wherebythe press lever 17 is caused to remain within the bounds of the frameand not permitted to swing beyond the limits thereof for the reason thatto do so would take up space and be wasteful of Hoor area such as now isso common of pressing machines on the market. My machine is intended tobe operated by hand or by pedal for closing the head thereof, andimmediately after the pressing members have made contact, the powermeans is manually turned on or automatically turned on, as the case maybe, for the purpose of applying inal pressure by power means to saveunnecessary labor on the part of the operator. Preferably the head ofthe press is closed by hand, and for this purpose a handle 19 isprovided on` the head by which the operator pulls the head forwardly anddownwardly, but it will be shown how a foot pedal may be used in thisconnection as well.

A counterbalance weight acts against the press lever to equalize theweight of the head 15, and to this end a bell crank 21 is pivoted at 22on the frame and on one arm thereof a weight 23 is ixed while the otherarm thereof is pivotally connected by a link 24 to the press lever 17rI`he weight and appliedleverage of the counterbalance member 23 acts topoise the head 15 in such a manner that an operator may readil pull thehead downwardly and forwardly y hand in contact with the buck 13, buttheweight 23 may if desired overbalance the head to automatically openthe press at the end of the pressing period.

A toggle locking and pedal closing mechanism consists of a link 26pivotally connected to the press lever at 27 and pivotally connectedv at29 to a companion link 28; and the link 28 has the other end thereofpivotally mounted upon a power lever as will be described. A removablepedal 30 has the inner end 31 bolted onto the link 26 and reach- Y esaround the link 28 and projects forwardl of the frame where it is 1nconvenient position for the operator to place his foot thereon tofacilitate the straightening of the toggle 26-28. TheA pedal 30 may ofcourse be integrally formed with the link 26, but in the presentdisclosure I have illustrated 4it as being detachable from the togglelink 26 for the purpose of removing the pedal entirely' from thepressing machine thereby permitting the press to be closed by handpowe'rn only. 'Ihe pedal 30 is only shown in up position, the pressbeing open, and is omitted from other views for clearness.

A bell crank having lever arms 32 and 33 is pivoted at 34 to the framel0. The arm 32 is made considerably longer than the depending arm 33 forthe purpose of producing leverage. The lower end of the short arm 33pivotally supports the lower end of the short toggle link 28, and thebell crank 33 thereforeV acts as a support for one end of the toggle26-28. A pivot pin 35 pivotally connects the toggle link 28 to the bellcrank arm 33 and acts more or less as a fixed support against which thetoggle 26--28 pushes or rIhe pivot pin 35 also carries a kick-off ped lal comprising a foot piece 37 with a rear arm 38 carrying al lug 39reaching underneath the pivot pin 29 connecting together the two togglelinks 26 and 28. The kickof pedal'normally rests against a frame stop 40and stands in position ready to thrust upwardly against the toggletobreak its locked position to open the press. The operator is required toexert only slight pressure on the kick-off pedal 27 to break the togglecausing the head 15 to rise.

The long lever arm 32 of the power bell crank reaches rearwardly and isacted on by motor means for the purpose of producing final pressure; andin this instance I have ysa produced an improvement in power presses,for rather than use an electric motor, or a steam or air cylinder, Iemploy an improved diaphragm or fluid pressure motor for moving the arm32 through a short distance under is securedV to the frame 10 by abracket 43.

-The bellows or diaphragm 48 has its lower end anchored to a head 44.The head is lprovided with a locking lug which rests in the housing 42,and a steam or air pipe connection 46 is established with the head 44 tosupply steam or air to the motor means from a pipe 47. The diaphragm 48has its upper end anchored between a concave head 49 and a screwed on-cover plate 50. The part 50 may project over the rimof the housing 42if desired to completely enclose and rotect the bellows element 48. Apost 51 1s made integral with the bellows head 49-50 and reaches up toengage the endof the lever 32. The bellows unit 48 stretches out underfiuid pressure admitted thereinto to swing the longer arm 32 upwardlywhich correspondingly swings the short bell crank arm 33 rearwardly toproduce a thrust through the over-straightened toggle linkage 26-28. Thesteam-pipe 47 is equipped with a valve 52 which is providedwith anexhaust port 53. A valve control rod 54 connects with the stem ofl theValve 52 and reaches forwardly of the frame where the front end of thisrod is equipped with a double acting valve control member havingopposite foot pieces 55 and 56. When the operator depresses the pedalend 55, the fluid pressure is exhausted from the diaphragm 48 outthrough the exhaust port 53; and when the operator de- A presses theother end 56 of the foot pedal,

steam or fluid pressure is quickly admitted from the pipe 47 into thepipe connection 46 to expand the bellows and produce high pressurebetween the pressing jaws as explained.

In the operation of the machine, the oper- I ator spreads the work uponthe buck 13 and draws the head closed by using the handle 19 or bydepressing the pedal 30, or by using both such means if desired. By thetime the head 15 reaches engagement with the work, the toggle 26--28 hasreached straight line position and has sli htly overstraightened itselfto produce a loc ed condition such that the said toggle 26-28 stands'outin a slightly overstraightened condition .under the strain and thrustimposed therethrough by the bell crank arm 32 when the high pressuremotor means acts.

The operator next depresses the pedal 56 which oscillates the rod 54 toopen the valve 52 thereby admitting fluid pressure under the motor head49 of the unit whereupon the diaphragm instantly expands upwardly tothat position shown in Figure 2, the result of which is to imposeextremely high pressure between the pressing jaws. After the pressingperiod has been prolonged a suitable tlme, the operator depresses theother side or end 55 of the motor control pedal to cause the pressure todischarge fr'om the unit 48 thereby permitting the bell crank arm 32 togravitate downwardly which quickly and noiselessly removes high pressurefrom the head, whereupon the operator depresses the kick-off pedal 37which breaks the toggle 26-28 upwardly thereby permitting the head 15 toquickly rise as it is lifted by the counter weight 23. v

My improved motor means saves the exense of manufacturing the piston andcylv lnder elements necessar1ly employed in fluid pressure motorsheretofore used. Furthermore its use eliminates the leakage of water andoil which always occurs around the ordinary fluid pressure motor such asan engine or a pump. Very little expansion or movement is required ofthe motor 48 for the reason that the pressing jaws are brought intoclose Contactin engagement before the diahragm acts. inal pressure isimposed by introducing a strain throughout the operating mechanism whichis carried out without .apparent motion of parts. Theonly appreciablemoving operating parts is the short upward stroke of the outer arm 32and the bell crank which travels a very short distance due to "the factthat the head 15 has already engaged the work and buck prior to startingthe motor means. Furthermore, my improved power press and its motormeans is very economical in fluid pressure such as steam for the reasonthat the head 49 is concaved into the element 48 which fills up theentire space ordinarily present in the bellows and thereby requiring arelatively small amount of fluid pressure to operate the motor means.

What 1 claim is: l

1. -A pressing machine comprising cooperating press jaws including ahead and buck, a frame, a press lever fulcrumed in the frame .andcarrying the head by which the jaws are opened, a corrugated diaphragmmounted on the frame, means vfor supplying fluid pressure to thediaphragm, a locking toggle connected with the press lever to hold thepress y jaws closed, a power lever fulcrumed on the frame having one endconnected to the toggle and the other end connected with the diaphragm,hand closing means for pulling the head down upon the buck, anda pedalextension made on and as a part of the toggle to `facilitate the manualclosing of the head.

2. A pressing machine comprising cooperating press jaws including a headand buck, a frame, a press lever fulcrumed in the frame and carrying thehead by which the jaws are opened, a corrugated diaphragm mounted on lthe frame, means for supplying fluid pres-v "llo sure to the diaphragm,said press lever being disposed in a vertical position with the upperend curving forwardly to reach the head and its lower end Cprojectinginside the frame, said lower en of the press lever being adapted toswing inside the frame to open wide the press, a counter balance memberpivoted inside the frame and adapted to swing within the frame limits, aconnection made between the press lever and counter balance member, alocking toggle connected with the press lever to hold 'the jawstogether, a pedal forming one element of the toggle and adapted to helpclose the press, and a connection established between the diaphragm andlocking toggle. n

3..A pressing mechine comprising cooperating press jaws including a headand buck, a frame, a press lever fulcrumed in the Jframe and carryingthe head by which the jaws are opened, motor means for applying finalpressure, said press lever being disposed in a vertical position withthe upper end curving forwardly to reach the head and its lower endprojecting inside the frame, said lower end of the press lever beingadapted to swing inside the frame to open wide the press, a counterbalance member pivoted inside the frame and adapted to swing within theframe limits, a connection made between the press lever and counterbalance member, a locking toggle connected with the press lever to holdthe jaws together, a pedal forming one element of the toggle and adaptedto help close the press, and a connection established between the motormeans and locking toggle.

4. A pressing machine comprising in combination, a frame, a head andbuck, a press lever yoke pivoted on the frame and reaching over the buckand lixed to the head, said lever being pivotally carried on the frameat a point below the pressing plane of the meeting head and buck whichimparts a compound upwardly and rearwardly swinging motion to the headcarrying the front edge of the head up and back from the buck, a

downwardly projecting press lever arm in tegral with the press lever anddesigned to move within the frame limits, connected links forming alocking toggle to hold the head down, one toggle end'being pivoted tothe lower end of the aforesaid arm to swing the head down when thetoggle straightens and swing the head up when the toggle breaks, saidtoggle adapted to lock the head down, unlocking means arranged to breakthe toggle, another lever pivoted on the frame and to which is connectedthe other. end of the toggle, and means for actuating the last namedlever with great force to pros duce high compression in the press.

5. A pressing machine comprising in combination, a frame, a tablecarried thereon, a press buck carried on the frame, a movable ress headcoacting with the buck, a press iever pivoted on the frame and disposedin a vertical position, a yoke made on the upper end of the press leverand reaching overthe table and attached to the head, the press leverframe .fulcrum point being located below the pressing plane and to therear of the longitudinal axis of the head and buck to introduce a comound motion of the head to throw it baci away from the front edge of thebuck and simultaneously raise it above the buck to expose the buck toview, a counterbalance means connected with the press lever, a toggleconnecting with the lever to hold the press head down, said toggle beingdisposed horizontall in the frame with one end of the toggle pivotallymounted on the front of the 'frame and the rear end of the toggleconnected with the lower end of the press lever, and means for applyinga thrust through the toggle to produce compression between the head andbuck.

6. A pressing machine comprising in combination, a frame, a tablecarried thereon, a press buck carried on the frame, a movable press headcoacting with the buck, a press lever pivoted on the frame and disposedlin a vertical position, a yoke made on the upper end of the press leverand reaching over the table and attached to the head, the press leverframe fulcrum point being located below the pressing plane and to therear of the longitudinal axis of the head and buck to introduce acompound motion of the head to throw it back away from the front edge ofthe buck and simultaneously raise it above the buck to expose the buckto View, a counterbalance means connected with the press lever, alocking means connecting with the lever to hold the press head down, ahousing mounted in the frame, a corrugated power bellows thereincontained with one end anchored to the housing and the other end leftfree to eX- pand, means supplying iiuid pressure to the fixed bellowsend, and a connection established between the expansible bellows end andthe aforesaid locking means to produce compression between the head andbuck.

7. A pressing machine comprising in combination, a frame, a tablecarried thereon, a press buck carried on the frame, a movable press headcoacting with the buck, a press lever pivoted on the frame and disposedin a vertical position, a yoke made on the upper end of the press leverand reaching over the table and attached to the head, the press leverframe fulcrum point being located below the pressing plane and to therear of the longitudinal axis of the head and buck to introduce acompound Ino-l tion of the head to throw it back away from the frontedge of the buck and simultaneously raise it to expose the buck to view,a counterbalance means connected with the press lever, a toggle havingits rear end connected with the lower cnd of the lever to hold the presshead down, a power lever for applying pressure pivoted on the frame ,andconnected with the front end ol the toggle, a motor means connected withthe power lever.

8. A press comprising in combination, a frame. cooperating press jaws, avertical press lever adapted to open and close the jaws. a substantiallyhorizontally mounted toggle having one end attached to the lower end ofthe vertical press lever, movable means carried by the frame supportingthe other end of the toggle, and a toggle operating pedal including afoot piece carried on the toggle and projecting forwardly from the frameto straighten the toggle and close the jaws, and motor means to actuatethe movable means to eXerta thrust through the toggle and produce jawcompression.

9. A press comprising, a iframe, a cooperating press buck and head, avertical press lever including an upper arch 'reaching over the buck andattached to the h ead to open the press and including a downwardly eX-tending arm, a frame pivot .carrying the press lever to the rear andbelow the buck and head press head balancing means including, a bellcrank pivoted on the frame underneath the buck and head, a weigllt onone end of the bell crank, a link connecting the bell crank to the presslever: and mechanism to operate the press lever to open and close thepress.

10. A press comprising, a frame, a cooperating press buck and head, avertical press lever including an upper arch reaching over the buck andattached to lthe head to open the press and including adownwardlyextending arm, a frame pivot carrying the press lever to therear and below the buck and head; press head balancing means including,a bell crank pivoted on the frame underneath the buck and head, a weighton one end of the bell crank and swinging up and down toward the frontof the press, a link connectedwith the press lever armbelow theframepivot;and operating means to open and close the press andincluding, a toggle one end of which is`\ ing two arms one of whichconnects with the motor means and the other of which connects with theother toggle link.

l2. In a press, a frame and a head and buck carried thereby, an uprightswingable press head actuating member arched around the buck andattached to the head, pivot i means carried by the frame below the headand buck and on which the member is movably carried, a bell crankpivoted on the frame and toggle means connecting it with the lower endof the head actuating member to move the same on the pivot means, meansto work the bell crank, and means mounted on the frame and connectedtothe member above the toggle to balance the member and the press head.

13. In a press, a frame and a head and buck carried thereby, an uprightswingable press head actuating member arched around the buck andattached to the head, pivot means carried by the frame below the headand buck and on which the member is movably carried. a lever carriedbelow the buck within the frame, toggle means having one end connectedto the lever and the other end connected to the lower extremity of themember, means to work the lever, a pedal below the toggle means andconnected therewith, and balancing means under the buck within the frameand connected with the member above the toggle to balance the head andmember.

In testimony whereofI aix my signature.

' MORRIS M. TITTERINGTON.

connected to the lower end of the press lever the press and including adownwardly eX- tending arm, a frame pivot, carrying the press lever, tothe rear of and below the buck and head; and mechanism to operate the'press lever to open and close the press including, operator actuatedn'leans to aid in closing the press, motor means, a toggle embodyingpivotally connected links one of which is connected to the press leverarm,

a bell crank pivoted on the frame and hav-

